Early Spring 2013

Spring is here and we see lots of activity in the chicken coop.  Egg production has increased and we are having all kinds of colored delicious eggs.  Our roosters seem to be getting along and everybody is looking for worms and bugs all over.  They are so much fun to watch!!

The boys  Kikiriki!!!

The girls happily pecking away!!

We enjoyed picking buttercups to decorate our dinning table.  They are so gentle and resilient.

 They survive in Daniels hands for a long time.  We go for a walk around our neighborhood and he loves picking them and carries them in his hands all the way home, jumping, skipping and running along the way.  Yet, the flowers are still as beautiful and all together as when they were just sitting there on the side of the road.  Amazing! 

 Talk about being resilient.  

So much to learn when we just watch children and nature.

There they are.    Beautiful!

Apple blossoms and yes, the bees are everywhere, happily humming.  I think they are having a party in my backyard and my heart is singing!!  I love this incredible tiny bees...their humming is music to my ears.  I've been reading and learning more about them.  Daydreaming about taking care of a hive.  They need our help and I would like to contribute in my very own small way. 

 We ought so much to them and it feels as the least I can do for them is to help them and house them without pesticides here in my yard.

Kind hearts are the gardens

Kind thoughts are the roots

Kind words are the blossoms

Kind deeds are the fruits

Our spring nature scene

Daniel's fairy Garden

Daniel loves to garden just like me!!! Yes, now I have a much needed helper!  We got some seeds at the nursery that were specifically for fairy gardens and we spread them all over....Now he is watering them and making the whole bed nice and pretty for the fairies to live.  There are paths, houses, a place for them to make a little fire at night if they want, and off course a jail...just in case somebody breaks the rules or a bad troll needs to be put away.

Pepe is growing as quick as the weeds in our garden, except we are not pulling him out and giving him as a snack to the chickens, we are keeping him.  He's kind of cute.

 

As the weather changes, we are spending more time in the garden.  Letting the sun kiss our faces, feeling the energy shifting.  Planting seeds, wishes and Potatoes!

Daniel's half birthday in Rosemary Kindergarten

Since Daniel's birthday is in the summer, his teachers and classmates celebrated his half birthday in February.  It was a very special day for him and we had a chance to be with him with his friends and in such and enchanting place.  He is such a lucky boy to be going to this school. 

 Everything he experiences from the morning hug from his teachers to being the washer or the drier after snack and the opportunity to be a 6 year old and play in the mud, swing, run, build forts and climb trees, to hear stories from his teacher who so lovingly prepares them, memorizes them and does a puppet show for them. 

 I just can't think of a better place to be in that age.  He is honored, respected, and held in the most loving way.  

Words cannot express how grateful I am to have found this place for Daniel, for Santiago and for ME too...This community has given us the strength  courage and love we needed in this hard transition we are in.

Ronan is a very special friend this year.   They get along very well and are always asking for playdates.

Since Pepe was still too little to stay at home alone for too long, he came to the celebration as well and all the kids loved having him visit the kindergarten.

I love being around this kids.  This year I still did spanish circle time with them once a week and I always come out of there with my heart so full.  This is my calling definitely, being around children and learning from them is what makes me feel alive and purposeful.

Pepe, our new dog!!

Pepe joined our family in February and he has been a joy for all of us.  Yes, he is a puppy and that means lots of energy and mischief but nonetheless he can't stop showing us how much he loves us by licking us, playfully butting us and jumping like a bunny.  He has learned that he can't jump on us, especially Daniel who is little still and could get knocked down by Pepe so he just jumps along side us and he looks like a bunny.  Sweet!

He is a labradoodle and he is getting BIG fast!!  We have to get a huge crate for him and he is crate trained now....a blessing.  No shoes are getting chewed on and no accidents inside the house.  Not bad fo a young puppy.

He likes to go on hikes and is already signs that he loves the water.  Can't wait for summer to see him swimming in the river like our sweet cookie used to do.

  A New Beginning

Life has taken an unexpected turn for our family.  
From now on, stories shared here will be of the joys and adventures that Daniel, Santiago and I will be experiencing.

Dad is taking a different road and we wish him the best in his new life while the kids and I continue our path.  

Sometimes, life swirls you around unexpectedly and it takes a while to catch up with it.
But, when true courage is found and faith in Divine guidance is felt deep inside your heart, suddenly this new path is not so scary anymore.  
Hope and curiosity start to guide you forward and when we start to take those new steps in unknown territory, we discover hidden treasures along the way.  

In the summer, both kids got to experience the gift of letting go.  
Daniel raised a few butterflies from caterpillars.  
Amazing process for him to experience, and then we released them in the garden and watched them fly away and drink from the flowers nearby.  

Lately, my favorite quote is "Without change, there would be no butterflies"   I find this to be so true!

Santiago found a hurt gold finch in our yard and took good care of it for a few weeks.
When his wing was healed and  he was strong enough to fly, we had to talk a lot about what our next step was.  

In his heart, he was hoping to keep him forever in his cage.
We talked about  how important it was for him to go out and be able to fly in the sky again.  
It was not easy for Santiago, but he finally did it, he set him free with a sad face.  I'm so proud of him!!

 We still think of him sometimes, but when we look out and see goldfinches flying around, we  feel happy to know that "goldie" is free and heathy.

In the fall, we were busy collecting the fruit of our labor.  

Even though we had a late start in the season, we were able to harvest lots of fruits and vegetables from our garden and orchard.  

The two apple trees were filled with apples and the kids and I made applesauce, apple pies, apple crisps and of course, sometimes we just shined them and ate them just like that!!
They were delicious!

Plus, there was plenty to share with friends.

The corn was amazing...many different colors and varieties.  
We had plenty of homegrown Jack o lanterns for Halloween.

The kids had their own plot in the vegetable garden for them to plant whatever they wanted and they both wanted
was...... pumpkins!!  All kinds of shapes and sizes.  I have to say, for next year, our garden spot needs to get bigger, the pumpkin plants pretty much took over.

The little pumpkins decorated our front porch beautifully!

Advent time rolled around rather quickly for us.
Before we knew it, the spiral was up, and as usual, we enjoyed lighting it, feeling the healing energy of those candles and the comforting melody of our favorite christmas songs.



Our hearts are filled with joy when we are able to slow down, sing together and look into each others eyes in the darkness of those days.  We know in our hearts that we are so blessed to have each other and the presence of angels all around us is palpable.  We feel held and loved.

We had a chance to go to Florida for the holidays.  The kids  spent time with their dad, grandparents, aunts and cousins and from what I hear, they had a wonderful time.

I had a lovely christmas with my sister and my niece and nephews and a few times, the kids and I had our outings at the beach which were amazing!!

We dug big holes in the sand, deep enough to hide in them and the canals that Felipe and Santiago made were quite elaborate...the water was just right...not too cold, not too hot and we were able to swim in it in the middle of December.  Yes!!

Daniel and I had the best time building fairy houses and he loves to be buried in the warm sand.

Being at the beach with the kids is so soothing for me....the sounds of the waves, so relaxing and I feel more connected to them and to the healing powers of nature.  
It was a true blessing to be able to go there!

4th grade field trip

Spring is coming!

It's beginning to look like spring around here and we are so pleasantly surprise to find in our garden so many beautiful flowers coming up like daffodils, hyacinths and some irises as well.

There's one tree in the front yard that has been a show stopper for me...it's completely covered with pink blossoms and we can see it from the dinning room. Just beautiful!!

My sweet husband woke up one Saturday and got to work right away...he pruned all the fruit trees and we are clearing the area where the vegetable garden will be! Happiness comes in so many different packages this days.
I've been daydreaming lately of all of the different vegetables and fruits we will be planting this year. Lately, quinoa has been on my mind. We enjoy it so much and I have never grown it. Oh.. the possibilities!!

The baby chicks that we got back in the fall, are now full grown and just last week started laying their first eggs...they are so small at first. We are saving some of them to decorate for our easter tree this year!

This one is "pitufina", she is a silkie bantam and she thinks she is a dog. If you get close to her, she stops and waits for you to pet her. She is my favorite of them all!

She was born with a crooked beak, but fortunately, she can eat and drink without a problem. She is so little, she does not roost like the other big girls, she just lies on the ground in a corner of the coop. At the beginning, when the rooster was still small, him and pitufina would cuddle up together and it was such a sweet sight. The man of the house taking care of the baby..:)

This are our two Delawares, we call them "las dos Marujas"

Honey y miel are two "orpington buffs"

"Silvia" is our Light Brahma.

Old English bantam "expresso"

"Lola" Rhode Island Red

We have 3 "white leghorns" called "las tres Margaritas. We named them in honor of our old Margarita whom we lost to a Coyote...:(

Silver Wyandotte "Danny chick"...can you guess who named her? She was a chick from when we lived in Los Gatos, so Daniel was 3 years old when he named her!

Filomena, our oldest hen is a "Barred Plymouth Rock"

Ash is a "Black star", a mix of Rhode Island Red and Barred Rock

Richie Ricardo is our sweet rooster. He is an "Ameraucana". We got so lucky with him!! He is gentle, not aggressive at all. He even lets us pick him up!

We are now collecting 14 eggs a day!! Including a green egg from "Ester". I just looove seeing the different colored eggs arranged in a bowl on our counter every morning. We are so thankful for them.
They are gentle, have amazing personalities and we just love to see them outside greeting us sometimes when we come home.

Santiago now is saving money for a horse and he is selling eggs at school to start his very own first business. This is our logo now; "RFF" Rios Family Farm...so sweet!

Now the excitement of eggs in our chicken coop everyday is one more reason why we love Spring!!

The welcome Gnome is beautifully adorned with colorful Hyacinths this days!

The pear tree is in full bloom and attracting lots of bees!!

This weekend, we will be getting some more fruit trees to plant in our orchard and I have been planning what our vegetable garden will look like...this is the site for it...I'm sooo excited.
Spring fever is in the air!

A few days before the Spring Equinox, we had a pleasant surprise! We woke up one morning and everything outside was covered with a nice thin layer of snow!
We all loved it, went outside and just marveled at the beauty and even ate a little bit of it!

With that, we said good bye to King WInter and hello to Lady Spring!!